Putting Out Fires
by dancexdance
Summary: A whole lot is going on. A general mash of Labyrinth and HP. Will have other people from other books/movies/games/tv shows and an OC or two.
1. Putting Out Fires

Putting out Fires

Harry's seventh year. They had all been waiting for it; he would defeat the dark lord, graduate, and go on being The-Boy-Who-Survived-It-All. He watched from a corner of the Great Hall as all his friends and classmates swept across the stony floor. In a room so full, who would ever feel as lonesome as he did? He was feeling quite enough paradoxical as it was. Being the golden boy had its bonuses, but being so every girl wanted him for their date at the prom, and having finally chosen one, the rest automatically; albeit temporarily, despised him. It didn't seem to matter much who his true object of affection was, in three weeks he would never see that person again. Harry chuckled to himself, wondering how far the boys' mouths would drop until they completely unhinged. They were all staring at the band on the floating stage, or more specifically, the beautiful raven-haired songstress that had just removed her cloak to reveal what she wore underneath.

It turned out to be black leather, and lots of it. Her top was indicative of a corset, ending with a thick, black studded belt. _Tres gothique._ Harry thought to himself. He stole a quick glance around the room in search of his date, who had all but disappeared from the room. He noticed that most of his professors seemed to be enjoying the music, however obscure and heavy it was. The one he least expected to see at this dance, was by far the most captivated by the siren prancing about the stage. Severus Snape, whom Harry once mistook his feelings towards as absolute hatred, was standing along the far wall of the Great Hall, about ten feet from the stage. Harry looked to the woman on stage, and notice that every few lyrics that rolled off her tongue, she would glance at Snape, and her ever-gleaming smile would widen by the smallest of fractions. "That has to be his girlfriend or something, otherwise why would she smile like that at him?" Harry mumbled under his breath. His attention shifted as the song ended and Professor McGonagall hurried onto the stage and whispered something into the woman's ear. Just as the band was beginning the next song of the set, the woman cut them off with a simple brusque gesture. The expression on her face had changed from one of complete ecstasy, to one of utter terror. Her silken voice flowed over the hovering microphone in front of her, but she was not singing any longer. "Everyone is asked to make their way back to their quarters, everyone involved in The Order, please remain." At that, Harry plucked himself from position on the wall and made his way towards the front of the stage. As he passed, he heard many sounds of confusion, excited whispering, and groans of dissatisfaction. No one had moved yet. Snape had stepped onto the stage and his voice boomed across the hall. "Everyone leave NOW!" The chaos of 150 students clambering to exit the hall was instant. Within two minutes, there were only a handful of people left, the members of The Order and the raven beauty.

The songstress had sat down on the front of the stage, permitting her legs to dangle freely off the floating stage. "What's wrong?" Ron asked as he joined Harry by the front of the stage after bidding farewell to his date. No one spoke for what seemed an eternity. Snape sighed heavily, and in the most melancholy of tones, "He is coming." Not one question was asked, the term 'He' had become synonymous with Voldemort. Just saying 'He' was much easier that 'He-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named'. "He's going to attack the school?" Harry queried. "Yes, Potter. Now I suggest we adjourn this meeting to prepare. We still have a few hours before he arrives." With that the group dispersed. "'Arry, why d'you suppose that singer lady was in on the conversation?" Ron asked through a mouthful of hors d'oeuvres. "That's disgusting, swallow before you speak please. I don't know why she was allowed to listen to the conversation. I don't even know who she is." Ron nearly choked on his food when Harry said this. "You don't know who she is?! That's Elena Avengis! Not only is she one of the most famous singers on the planet, she's a vampire, shape shifter and an EXTREMELY powerful wizard! I'm surprised you haven't heard of her!" Harry's mind was reeling, but his mouth could still work and came up with an honest answer. "How could I have heard of her? Whenever I'm at the Dursley's, they never let me watch the telly, I can't go outside and they don't let me have a radio! How the bloody hell should I know her?" Harry's chest was heaving after his rant, and everyone in the hall was looking at him. He threw daggers about the room with his glare. "Yeah! So I don't have all the luxuries that a 'Golden Boy' like me should have! Nobody knows what I've gone through! You see these?" He lifted his shirt to show off the multitude of scars that raced across his chest. "They hit me every day, their bastard son uses me for a punching bag, and his stupid aunt lets her dog attack me. You all expect me to want to fight Voldemort? Sure I want the bastard dead for what he's done to me and my family, but I have no fight left in me! I just want to be loved, but all I have is friends and unrequited love." He paused to take on air. "You think that it's so great to be me. You're wrong. Being me hurts." With that Harry started to storm from the room. Elena's velvet voice stopped him in his tracks. It wasn't just because she was talking to him; it was because she was speaking directly into his mind. _Harry, don't rush off, I wish you to meet someone. He and you are quite alike. _Harry spun around to look for Elena, but she was gone. When he turned, he found her already ten feet in front of him. "Well, are you coming?" She looked at him with an expression he couldn't quite place. Like a mixture of wisdom, understanding and pity. Her ever changing eye colour captivated Harry, as he gazed into their depths, he found himself involuntarily moving towards the beautiful vampire, wizard, shape shifter... whatever she was. Elena opened her arms to give him an embrace he dearly wished someone would give him. "They have no idea what it's like to be me, they never will." Harry whispered into the hollow of Elena's neck, one stray tear dripping from his nose onto the porcelain skin of her chest. Despite everything Harry had ever heard about vampires, this one was surprisingly soft, and warm.

After a moment, Elena lifted her head and gently spoke to Harry. "It's time to go meet him, come along now." Harry looked up at her with drying eyes. "Thank you." He stepped back and Elena took him by the arm. Harry paused, contemplating his words to follow. "Um, Elena?" "Hmm?" Harry's heart fluttered as the melodious sound resonated through their latched arms. "I was wondering; how do you know Professor Snape? I mean, It's just, I wouldn't think I guy like him could be with a woman such as yourself." Harry immediately wished he could take those words back. What happened next, Harry definitely didn't expect. Instead of tearing her arm from his and throwing curse words around, Elena laughed. The sound that emanated from her was like hundreds of tiny, twinkling bells. "Harry! Whatever made you think that?" "Well, I noticed you glancing at him every few minutes while you were on stage, and every time you did so, your smile grew wider. What is your relationship with him then?" Elena chuckled and sighed, tilting her head slightly forward to look at the ground. She stopped Harry and looked straight into his eyes. "Harry, I know what I'm about to tell you doesn't seem believable, but it is true. Promise me you will stay calm?" "Of course, Elena. What could you say to me that would agitate me?" Elena sighed again, glanced at the floor then put her hands on Harry's shoulders. "The reason why I looked at your professor with such affection is because I am his mother."

Harry continued to stare into Elena's continuously changing eyes, his mouth gaping slightly as he registered and processed the words that came from her mouth. He watched as her eyes changed, blue, gold, green, silver, red, violet. Elena watched Harry with slight amusement towards the wash of emotions over his face. Harry's expression finally stopped at one of confusion. "How can you be his mother? You don't look a day over 21!" Elena chuckled, "I'm a vampire, Harry. Even if I were human I would be much too **old **to be his mother. But that's for another time." She returned to Harry's side and locked arms with him again. "Best put the matter out of mind. You have bigger things to think of." Elena led Harry into her dressing quarters. "What are we doing here?" Harry asked, perplexed. "Like I said, I need to introduce you to someone. Have a seat." Elena swept a slender arm towards the overstuffed sofa by the fireplace. Harry watched her as she opened the large bay window that looked over the school grounds. "Watch this Harry. What's the grandest entrance you've ever seen? This is ten times better." Elena backed away from the window and planted herself firmly on the floor. With a voice that seemed to echo through the room, Elena called. "_I wish the Goblin King would come take me away!" _ The lights in the room dimmed, flickered and shut off, the candles on the mantle blew out and Harry heard a gently fluttering. "Elena! Get away from the window!" He began to rise, and Elena ceased his actions with the same brusque action from in the Great Hall. A sudden gust of warm air sent her cloak billowing out behind her. When Harry saw what was making the fluttering noise, something inside of him seemed to relax. It was just a white owl. Nothing more. Why did Elena bring him to her dressing room then?

As soon as the owl touched down on the floor, it began to change. Harry had seen shape shifting before, but none like this. In mere seconds, in place of the owl, a man stood. A man like no other. As the man stood to his full height, glitter fell from his clothing, and what clothing it was. The man was dressed in dark colours, not quite black, but close. It wasn't so much the top portion that alarmed Harry as the bottom. This man was wearing the tightest pants Harry had ever seen in his life, they were so tight that they obviously didn't leave much to the imagination, so Harry tore his gaze away. "Just in time, Elena. I was just about to hang Hoggle over the Bog." "Ah, Jareth. So nice to see you again." Elena stepped forward to greet her guest. She turned and grasped Harry's hand, leading him to stand. "Harry, this is Jareth, King of the Goblins. Do not feel pressed to address him as 'Your Majesty', Jareth will do just fine. Jareth, this is Harry Potter." The wild looking blond stepped forward to shake Harry's hand. "Charmed, so you're the one I've heard so much about." As Harry's mind raced, the loudest thought broke through the top. _Who's been telling him about me? Why did Elena bring him here? _ "Harry." The sound of Elena's voice snapped him out of his thoughts. "Jareth is here to assist in the battle. He brings a kind of magic no one on earth possesses." With that, Jareth raised his hand and with a flourish, produced a perfect crystal clear sphere. "I can make these crystals do anything I wish, and I can summon them at any time." Jareth began rolling the ball over his long, slender hands. Harry barely heard anything Jareth said as we watched the crystal glide effortlessly over the gloved hand. "Yes, that's very nice Jareth, but we need to alert the others of your arrival." Harry snapped out of his trance and looked straight into Jareth's eyes. They too were odd, not quite as odd as Elena's, but odd all the same. One eye was a light blue, not very out of the ordinary, but the other, at first glance was mostly pupil with a ring of light golden brown. Harry shifted his head a touch to the side and saw that the eye was blue as well, with a tinge of brown. Jareth smirked, and walked towards the door. "Harry, it's not polite to stare." Elena whispered into his ear. "I know, but I couldn't help it! He's the oddest creature I've ever met!" He whispered back. "Don't think I didn't hear that." Jareth drawled from the door. Elena and Harry shared a glance and headed towards the door.

The time on the clock read 10:28.


	2. Vertigo

Vertigo

Elena led the two men down the stony corridors of the school; Harry trailed slightly behind Jareth with a perplexed look on his face. "Elena, dearest, may I ask where you are leading us?" "To the Great Hall, everyone is waiting for us. We still need to be fitted for our armour." Harry looked at the back of Jareth's head intently. Suddenly Jareth wheeled around to face Harry. "My boy, may you please cease your futile attempts at burning a hole through my skull. Elena already informed you that it is not polite to stare!" Harry halted to a stop and did a wonderful impression of a fish. "Close your mouth boy." Jareth smirked and extended a gloved finger to close Harry's gaping mouth. Elena sighed from her post five feet away. "Boys, we must not tarry. The time is upon us." Elena gestured to a clock that had appeared next to her. The clock read 11:37. "The witching hour is close." Jareth retreated from Harry and with two steps of his long legs he had joined Elena's side. Elena held out her hand to Harry. "Come along now." _Harry, you will find that such meaningless things to others are not so with Jareth. Ever since his... __**incident**__... he can't trust many people. _ Harry glanced at Elena, wishing he could also talk to her via telepathy. _You can talk to me Harry; just think of what you have to say. _He looked warily at her, and tried it. _**What kind of incident was this? **_ Harry saw Elena flinch out of the corner of his eye. _No need to yell Harry. I can hear you well enough. I am not the person you should be asking about Jareth's past. If you wish to know... ask him. _Harry felt a 'pop' reverberate through his head. He knew the link had been broken. Elena looked at Harry with an expression of suggestion. As the trio walked through the large wooden doors of the Great Hall, Elena broke off and went to talk to Snape. Harry saw his chance to confront Jareth about his past.

"Jareth, may I ask you a question?" Jareth looked at Harry with annoyance. "It seems you already have, now leave me be." Harry flustered after this statement. "I-I-I have another question." Jareth sneered at Harry. "What is it then? Have out with it, I haven't got all day." Harry swallowed heavily, wondering if he should ask his question. To him, Jareth seemed like a dangerous man. Like a cat with a bad temper. "Well? What's got your tongue? Speak boy!" "Uhh... !!!" Jareth tossed his wild blond head back and laughed, a deep sound that echoed about the room. "Come again? I wish you would articulate your words." Jareth said after composing himself. "Repetez vous, s'il vous plait." Harry twitched when the odd man spoke French. "What was that?" As soon as the words left Harry's mouth, Jareth glared at him. "I said please repeat! Gah, have you no second language?" "Um... no." Jareth sighed, lowered his face into his hand and shook his head. "Educational handicaps aside, what did you say?" "Um... I said that Elena told me that something happened to you that I could relate to." Jareth jerked at this, and his eyes rose to meet Harry's with a look of utter contempt. "She did, did she? Well, I suppose words would take too long, I'll just show you." Jareth stepped towards Harry and began taking off one of his leather gloves. He then placed two cool fingers to Harry's forehead. Harry's mind was instantly filled with strange images, whizzing by like a film on rewind. A pulsing pain began behind his eyes. "It's best if you close your eyes, Harry. Then the images from your eyes and the ones in your head won't mingle." Harry closed his eyes and the pain subsided. The flurry of images slowed and came to a stop. It was almost like he was viewing a memory from the pensieve again. Harry was standing beside a rather bedraggled tree, watching as Jareth conversed with a rather young girl.

"Give my brother back!" The young girl shouted at Jareth. "What's said is said, just forget the baby. Go play with your toys and costumes, Sarah." "But I can't!" The girl looked defeated. "I have to get him back. Where is he?" Jareth chuckled. "You know very well where he is Sarah." She looked at Jareth with confusion. "He is in my castle in the Goblin City, beyond the Labyrinth. You would be wise to forget about him." "No! How can I get him back?" Jareth growled under his breath, frustration creeping into his voice. "To get the baby back, you have to get to my castle. Do so in thirteen hours, and he is all yours. If you fail, he becomes one of us forever. _Such a pity._" Harry saw Jareth begin to fade away and felt himself do so as well. He found himself in a throne room of sorts, but not like any throne room he had ever seen before. Harry's idea of a throne room was all tassels and tapestries, with one, maybe two huge chairs at the highest point of the room. What he saw was a circular stone chair, draped with various fabrics. The rest of the room was occupied by multitudes of two foot tall goblins. Harry swerved to avoid one trundling towards him, then remembered that he was invisible and immaterial, and in Jareth's memory. He watched Jareth flop down into his 'throne' and ran his hands through his hair. "I offer the girl her damn dreams, and all she wants is her pathetic brother. Sarah will be the death of me." Jareth looked up at a seemingly random spot on the dusty floor, when Harry followed his gaze he saw a small baby sitting amongst the goblins. Jareth stood up and walked over to the baby. "Toby, that's your name is it? Well, don't expect to be rescued by your sister, she doesn't realize yet that I've given her exactly what she wished for. No matter, she won't have to. She will never beat my labyrinth. She'll most likely end up in the oubliette. Once she finds herself in the oubliette, she'll give up when she realizes that she has to start all over again!" One of the goblins pulled on Jareth's sleeve to get his attention. "But sire, she'll never give up!" "Won't she? Hmm, no matter. In thirteen short hours, her baby brother will be mine!" Jareth tossed his head back and laughed. Harry stood against the wall, observing this all happen when he was suddenly ripped from the memory.

He opened his eyes and Elena stood before him. "Harry! We must hurry! Our time has been misjudged, He is almost here!" She thrust a leather guard into his arms. "Here, put this on. It will protect you somewhat. I must go talk to Severus, be ready at any moment's notice." She walked towards Snape. Harry cast a spell he learned of to amplify what they were talking about. '_Severus, you need to know that I don't intend on returning from this battle. This will be the last thing I do to consummate my existence in the world." "Mother! What do you mean consummate your existence; you've never been on the side of evil!" "It is what I am that must be purged. I am filth upon this earth. People were never meant to live as long as I have. Not even wizards live as long as I have!" "But, if you die, I will be alone!" _Elena placed her hand on Snape's shoulder. _"Severus, you are never alone. You may turn a blind eye to it, but I know of someone in this very room that desires you very much." "What? Who?" _Elena turned her head minutely towards Harry, a gesture he did not see. _"Mother, you can't be serious." "Does it look like I'm kidding?" _Harry heard his professor sigh heavily and he lifted his head after fixing the guard. He gazed mock nonchalantly in their general direction, and saw Snape walking towards him.


	3. Exit Light

Exit Light

Elena finished doing up the buckles on her knee-high leather boots. When she stood to her full height of 5'7'', she was a sight to behold. She was dressed in all leather, save her face. The leather was enchanted to protect her most vital and vulnerable areas. It wasn't the same type of leather as her corset though. She was dressed in rough brown leather, with gold caps and studs. Her luxurious black hair hung to her waist, the one white streak pinned back out of her eyes. The fight was imminent in Elena's countenance, her eyes shifting through various dark hues and her canine teeth partially extended. The milky white teeth gently indented her bottom lip, almost sharp enough to draw blood. Her lips, once a dusty pink and at rest, were now deep cherry red and looked as if a wasp had stung them. Her eyes flitted warily around, searching for her comrades.

She spotted Jareth struggling with a leather chest plate, and was beside him in an instant. "Here, let me help you." She reached forward to assist him. "I don't need your help, Elena." She continued to grab the chest plate, and after struggling with her for a moment, Jareth gave up and dropped his arms to his sides. "I could really use you at my castle, Elena. The goblins aren't much help at all. Are you sure you won't join me after all this?" "Jareth, I've already told you I can't. I have other plans." Elena looked up into Jareth's eyes. He looked dejected, and worried. "It's nothing to worry your pretty little head about. It will all be over soon." She dropped her gaze and Jareth saw the fleeting look of guilt and sorrow. Jareth grabbed her shoulders and gently shook her. "Elena! What is going on? What are you about to do?" "Like I said, Jareth, don't worry. I've already made up my mind." "What is wrong?"

Elena's eyes had changed to a dark red colour. "Jareth, I don't want to do this, do **not **dig into my decisions." "Elena, just tell me, please! I'm your friend!" Elena was furious now. Her irises flicked from red to black, her brows furrowed and she glared at Jareth from beneath her thick black lashes. "Fine. If you must know, Jareth, I plan to not return from tonight's battle." Jareth stared at Elena with his mouth slightly agape. "Elena..." Jareth said breathlessly. "Don't try to change my mind. I am a scourge upon this earth. I am exhausted of living. Four hundred years is quite enough for me." Jareth continued to stare at her, his mismatched eyes slowly filling with tears. "It is unnatural for one to live as long as I have. Not even the strongest wizards live this long. I keep telling myself that I live only for my son. I know now that he is old enough to take care of himself. I didn't want to tell you because I know that you're the only one with the ability to alter my decisions." She looked up at the fae with a single solitary tear running down his cheek. She reached up and cupped his face in her hands. Jareth closed his eyes and laid a hand on top of hers. Elena gently pulled his face towards hers and said softly, "I knew this would happen if I told you. You're too pure to take this lightly. I'm sorry that it had to come to this, so if I am mortally wounded, please, for my sake, don't help me."

As soon as the words left her mouth, Jareth dropped his head and their lips connected. Elena received the kiss, and kissed him back with an intensity that rivalled an erupting volcano. Jareth turned them both so Elena's back was against the wall and his hands were planted on either side of her head. She wrapped her hands around the back of his head, her fingers becoming entwined in his hair. Elena pulled back from the kiss to utter a silencing spell and a concealment spell and dove right back into the kiss. Jareth gasped as her fangs grazed his bottom lip and brought the coppery metallic taste of blood to his mouth. This mixed with the salty taste of their tears running down their faces, and the sweet taste of Elena's lips. Jareth's hands ran down the sides of Elena's torso, and caught on the bulky belt she was wearing. He backed out of the kiss and dipped lower to suck on her neck, eliciting a quiet moan from Elena. Her hands slid up beneath Jareth's shirt and started roving over this lithely muscled chest, but stopped when they hit the low-slung medallion he wore. "Jareth," she whispered, "You shouldn't be here. You have a kingdom to look after. This is not a battle for you to fight." Her tears fell from her eyes and trickled slowly down her cheeks. Jareth stood up and wiped the tears from her porcelain skin. "My dearest friend, I will fight in your honour."He knelt to the floor, took Elena's hand and kissed lightly. Elena's now emerald green eyes looked down into Jareth's mismatched ones and smiled a sorrowful smile. The will to fight had left her eyes. "If only there was some way."

Elena dropped Jareth's hand and walked away. What she didn't hear was Jareth whisper, _"There's always a way."_

A/N: Sorry this chapter took so long. I've been really busy with scholarships and such, and the paragraph that was originally the beginning of this chapter gave me a huge writer's block. To all my watchers, thank you so very much. You have no idea how happy it makes me when I get those emails notifying me of a new watcher. And I forgot to put at the beginning of this whole shebang, Labyrinth, Harry Potter and all affiliated characters do not belong to me. All OCs belong to me. I do not make any money off this, it's just a hobby. Thanks everyone!!


	4. When Goodbye Means Forever

When Goodbye Means Forever

They all stood in front of the entrance of the school, all in their battle clothes ready for the attack. All was silent, save the heavy breaths of Elena smelling the air. She stood alongside her friends and family, Jareth on her left, Severus on her right, with Harry slightly behind. Everyone had some form of weapon, most had wands and spells at the ready, Jareth had an enchanted sword of sorts and Elena had her wandless magic and vampiric abilities. Her pupils had dilated to almost maximum, barely any iris was showing. Her hawk-like vision caught the first sign of movement from the depths of the Dark Forest. "They're here." She said in an almost jeering voice with an angry grin. Her fangs lowered to their full length and her features became a mask of pure hatred. _They have vampires! _She projected into Jareth's head. He glanced at her and minutely reeled back, for the once stunningly beautiful creature that was his friend was now a terrifying monster. He was about to tell her something, but at that instant a huge black dragon shot out of the forest and landed roughly 100 metres away from them. Elena bowed her head and began to unclasp the silver chain around her neck. She stepped forward, and turned to the group. "This ends now, the fight has begun, we will be victorious." Her voice seemed to echo across the clearing. She opened a small zippered pocket on the side of her pants, turned back around and dropped the necklace into it. What happened next was horrifying, and amazing. She began to change, her body melting and stretching, contorting into wickedly jagged features. Her arms lengthened, her hands changed into razor sharp claws and her muscles became more defined. Two spots on her back began to ripple and bulge and the skin between the straps on her back became bright red. She gave a mighty howl, and two huge grey wings exploded from her back.

Then she was gone. All of her comrades looked about to see where she had gone, and spotted her high in the sky, about to make an attack on the dragon's head. Death eaters, vampires and dark creatures of all kinds erupted from the forest, charging at the group. The battle had begun.

Elena was furiously slashing at the dragon's eyes, attempting to blind the creature before taking it down, all the while keeping a watchful eye on Harry. He was firing off spells and curses like mad, making his way through the hordes of people and creatures rushing at him, trying to kill him before he got to The Dark Lord. It didn't really matter what they did, if anything their curses would just glance off him and possibly bruise. The guard she had given him would reflect any spells and minimize the damage inflicted by the strongest of spells and curses. Her eyes roved over the bloody battlegrounds, searching for any fallen comrades. She spotted Jareth throwing his crystals around, creating small explosions around the dragon's feet. Severus was grappling with one of the death eaters nearby Harry. Elena dodged the dragon's spiked tail as it whistled by her face. She latched onto the back of the dragon's neck and began clawing furiously at its scaly hide. She was almost all the way through the thick, leathery top layer when another vampire grabbed her from behind and threw her off the beast. She fell about ten feet before unfurling her wings to rocket off into the night sky.

She was a fast flyer, but the other vampire caught up to her and began to grab at her ankles, trying to drag her down. Elena kicked at her attacker while beating at the air with her powerful wings. She winced and faltered when a rogue spell ripped into her right shoulder. Her falter was enough for the other vampire to take control, and send her careening towards the bloodstained ground below. She crashed into the packed dirt and cried out in pain, stood up and shook herself out, and took off again. But she was too slow; a death eater grabbed the tips of her wings and gave a tremendous yank, dislocating her wings and rendering her immobile and in immense pain. She laid her head down on the ground, and smiled. With her few ounces of strength left, she looked for her son. When she saw him, her heart sank. As he was casting spells in precisely aimed directions, Voldemort's snake, Nagini, was creeping up behind him, and rising to her full height to strike. Elena gathered one final breath and screamed across the battleground. Severus halted and turned just as Elena's eyes began to close. He, Jareth, Harry and all the others saw Elena's strength run out of her, and the other vampire's fist smash into the back of her head.

_Exiled and pushed away, lost in time_

_Always I'll be_

_This bitter person who's stuck right here,_

_disillusioned._

_Don't stand by_

_If you don't like what you see._

_So once satisfied._

_No I won't take what you said to me._

_Give me some time_

_Give me some reason_

_Make up your mind_

_Cool off the fever_

_Drama must die_

_Some give me some way to salvage this life_

_Finally it's over_

_I know we're stuck inside a dead end countdown_

_With no communication_

_Straight down,_

_We're drowning in the respiration_

_We're lost beneath the surface_

_Give me some time_

_Give me some reason_

_Make up your mind_

_Cool off the fever_

_Drama must die_

_Some give me some way to salvage this life_

_Finally it's over._

A/N: OH NOES!! Will Elena live? Reviews on your thoughts please! I'm sorry this chapter is so short; I've run out of ideas for the battle. My mind has run off with the rest of the story and decided not to give me a lot of detail about the battle. As you can probably tell, I'm not exactly going with what happens in the book. Well I'll be off now; my mind is already concocting what is going to happen in the next chapter.

P.S. Dead end countdown belongs to the amazing band, The New Cities.


	5. Brightest Hour, Darkest Day

_Brightest Hour, Darkest Day_

_Elena, please come back. We need you. _Elena heard these words whispered into her mind as the last bare strings of consciousness hung on. She felt strong arms lift her battered body with ease, but also with extreme gentleness. She felt her mouth open and a coppery fluid flowed over her tongue. _Don't do this, _She whispered into the other person's mind, _I made my decision before. Tell Jareth and Severus I love them, and I'll be waiting. NO! I can't let you go this way!_ The other person yelled into her mind. _You mean too much to all of us. You've saved our lives, without you, we would all be dead. _Elena chuckled internally at that, and the remaining threads of her consciousness slipped away.

_On the ground I lay_

_Motionless, in pain_

_Wake me up_

_I'm living a nightmare_

Elena awoke to a soft cushion below her and a warm blanket on top. She opened her eyes and looked around the room she was situated in. Speaking of which, was massive. She was laying upon a king sized four poster bed, with a shimmering golden canopy draped over the top and sides. She painfully turned her head to the side to see where the source of light came from, and found a large bay window looking over an odd landscape. She moved to push herself up into a sitting position, and cried out in pain. The blanket slipped down over her chest and revealed multitudes of bandages spanning her shoulders. Her wings were splayed out to the sides, when she tried to move them her flight muscles screamed in agony. They weren't dislocated anymore, but extremely sore. She then swung her legs carefully over the side of the bed, made her wings disintegrate in an explosion of feathers which vanished in a puff of smoke when they hit the floor, and realized that she was wearing some sort of feather-light white dress. _Am I in the afterlife? I can't be. This isn't what it should look like! _She limped over to the door of the chamber and opened the door.

What Elena saw gave her a mix of anger and relief. She saw goblins running everywhere; one spotted her and opened his beady eyes wide. "The lady is 'wake! I haves to tells the majesty!" Elena reached down with incredible speed and grabbed the stubby goblin by the collar of his ragged shirt and lifted him off the floor. "You aren't going anywhere. YOU are doing to give me answers." Her eyes blazed an inferno of red and orange. The goblin gulped heavily and stammered, "What do you wants to know?" "Firstly, where am I? This can't be the afterlife, there are too many of you running around here." The goblin grinned and promptly was shaken. "I ain't gonna tell you nothin' if you keeps shakin' me!" Elena dropped the squirming goblin and he landed on the dusty stone floor with a thud. "Ouch! What didja have to go do that for?" "Answer my question." The two foot tall creature looked at her with surprise and chuckled. "Well you're here, so you must know wheres you are." Elena stared at him, and cast a silent spell that set the goblin's shoes on fire. She watched him run around, screaming "Make it stop! I'll tells ya wheres you are!" She snuffed the fire with a single thought, and crossed her arms gingerly across her bandaged chest. "My my, ya have quite the temper, don'tcha?" "You are testing my patience, cretin." Elena spat at him. "Lady, you're in the Goblin Kingdom." Elena stepped back and hit the wall. _Jareth, I will destroy you!_ She thought and turned abruptly and headed towards the main Hall.

She entered the Hall and saw Jareth lounging on his throne. She crept up behind him, with silent footsteps and a malicious look on her face. He had his hair pulled back in a loose tail, so she grabbed hold of it and tugged sharply. Jareth gasped and sat still. "I believe we have matters to discuss, Jareth." Elena spat into his ear, gave his hair another sharp tug and rounded the stone chair. Jareth made to stand up, but Elena shoved him back down. "Elena, you must understand. I couldn't leave you there. You were in so much pain, screaming for all your hearts worth... You wanted to be saved." "Jareth, I told you what my wishes were! I specifically told you NOT to help me." "But you changed your mind." Elena sank to her knees and dropped her face into her hands. "Why bother living anymore? My son is dead. I have no purpose anymore." Jareth looked at Elena with wide, mismatched eyes and knelt down beside the distraught figure of his long-time friend. "Whatever are you talking about, Elena? Severus is here." "No he isn't. I saw what happened. He's dead." "Elena," Jareth took Elena's face in his hand. "Jareth, I'm all alone now, I have nothing!" Elena cut him off. "Elena!" Jareth moved a finger to her lips. "You are never alone! Don't think like that. Even if your son had died, you wouldn't be alone." Tears were streaming down Elena's face, and Jareth brought Elena into a tight hug. "Why did you bring me here?" She whispered into the golden mess of hair that her face was buried in. "You're going to hit me for this." Jareth chuckled and sent vibrations rolling throughout the room. "I want you to be my queen."

Elena hiccupped and pulled away from Jareth's embrace. "No, seriously, why did you bring me here?" Jareth just looked at her with innocent eyes. "You're not kidding, are you? Jareth, you don't want me, I'm damaged goods. I will only bring pain to your life." Elena's tears started flowing again. Jareth stood and helped her get up. "I do not care what your past entails, I know you better than anyone else. I want to live the rest of my life with you. I've waited for all these years for the right person, with varying relationships that always end in catastrophe, and always feel empty. I realized the other night that what I've been missing has been right in front of me this whole time." Jareth held her face as sobs wracked her battered body. Neither of them heard the quiet footsteps entering the room.

"Mother?" Elena jumped at the new voice that wasn't new at all. She turned to see her son standing at one of the doors entering the room. Her breath hitched in her chest, and she stumbled towards Severus with her arms outstretched. Severus pulled his mother into a deep hug and she clung tightly to her son's thin frame. "You're alive." "Because of you, yes I am." Elena looked up at Severus with an incredulous look on her face. "What do you mean 'Because of me'?" Severus released his mother and held her at arm's length. "When you screamed across the battlefield, it startled me and I turned to see where the scream came from. When I did so, I saw Nagini out of the corner of my eye, ready to strike, and struck first. Voldemort and all his minions are dead now." "And what of Harry?" Severus' features softened even further and he grinned. "Well, if he'll stop being so shy, he's hiding just around that corner." Severus raised his voice and a moment later Harry walked out from his hiding spot. "I'm not shy, Severus, just wary." Severus looked at him with a smirk and muttered "Indeed." Harry scowled at him and stuck his tongue out. He then turned and said to Elena, "Glad to see you're feeling better, whilst you were 'out of it', this guy here was a complete wreck." Harry jabbed a thumb in Jareth's direction, who shrugged.

Elena looked at Jareth, Harry, and then Severus and started giggling. Her eyes, which were once a brilliant green, now changed to a shining golden colour. She began to double over in laughter, and the others joined her in her mirth. When all the uncontrollable laughing had ceased, Jareth queried "My I ask why we were just laughing?" Elena looked at him and said "Haven't you ever had a good laugh just for the hell of it? Anyway, I was laughing at the fact that I've gone all mushy inside. Do you three have any idea of what you are doing to me?" They all looked at her with curiosity. "Oh don't look at me like that. Now, I'm famished, when can I eat something?" "Wait! You haven't answered my question yet!" Jareth whined at Elena. She turned to him and grinned.

A/N: OHEMGEE GUISE I'M SO SORRY! Srsly though, I have been incredibly busy these past weeks... months... whatever. I got a new job that requires me to be on my toes all the time. I'll try to get more of this done faster now that I'm settled in to a routine. If you have any comments, suggestions or questions, pm me or review. Ilu guys! 3


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